This invention relates to ostomy bags.
Attempts have been made recently to develop ostomy bags which can be disposed of by flushing in a wc, to avoid the need to make special disposal arrangements, which can be inconvenient, embarrassing and unhygenic.
WC-disposable bags have been proposed in the literature, the bags having an outer water-soluble or dispersible layer and an inner water-resistant layer. The outer layer provides mechanical support for the inner layer so that, when the bag is dropped into turbulent water in a wc pan, the outer layer is quickly broken up. The inner layer prevents the contents of the bag attacking the outer layer in use but, once the outer layer is broken up on disposal, the inner layer does not have sufficient mechanical strength in itself to cause blockage on flushing the wc. An example of such a bag is described in GB 2083762B. A wc-disposable bag is sold by SIMS Portex Limited, England under the name Symphony (Symphony is a Registered Trade Mark of SIMS Portex Limited).
Although such bags can be used satisfactorily, the user has to take special precautions to ensure that the outside of the bag does not become wet, because the outer layer would be damaged by contact with water. This can be especially inconvenient with bags which are worn long-term, for two or more days, such as is usually the case with ileostomy bags. The use of such bags can make washing difficult and prevents the user swimming.
An alternative form of bag is described in EP 0142950A, which is made of 3-hydroxybutyrate film, either in a laminate with a water-soluble film as an outer layer, or entirely from 3-hydroxybutyrate. Such a material remains intact when in contact with water or body waste, but is broken up if the pH is raised to about 12. The bag described is disposed of by adding a base material to the contents of the bag so as to raise the pH of the contents to at least 12 so that it breaks up when agitated in a wc pan.
A further alkali-disposable bag is described in GB 2195919B. The walls of this bag have a central layer of polyvinyl alcohol, an inner layer of a blend of polyvinylidene chloride acrylonitrile copolymer with carboxylated acrylic copolymer, and an outer layer of two or more coatings of carboxylated acrylic acid. This bag can be disposed of in a wc by adding an alkali to the water in the pan.
Another alkali-disposable bag is described in GB 2257056. This bag has an outer layer substantially entirely of alkali-soluble/water-insoluble carboxylated acrylic polymer forming a major part of the thickness of the material and a thinner, inner layer of alkali-resistant polyvinylidene chloride bonded directly to one side of the first layer. GB 2324761 describes an alkali-disposable bag with a non-woven outer layer.
Previous bags have a flange around their inlet opening supporting an adhesive material by which the bag is attached to the skin of the patient. In order to provide the desired security of attachment, the flange is thicker and stiffer than the walls of the bag. Although the flange can be made such that it can be flushed away in a wc, it can take longer to flush away and the perceived bulk of the flange can make users think that it will not flush away, or that it will create a blockage.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an alternative ostomy bag.
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided an ostomy bag comprising a flexible pouch and a flange by which the bag is attached to the patient, the pouch having a forward wall and a rear wall facing the patient, the rear wall having an opening therein through which waste material from the patient can enter the pouch, the flange comprising an inner ring and an outer ring, both rings having an adhesive surface for attachment to the patient, and one of the rings being attached with the rear wall of the pouch by a permanent bond and the other ring is attached with the pouch by a temporary bond such that the other ring can be removed from the pouch for disposal separately from the pouch.
The other ring is preferably the outer ring and the outer part of the outer ring may be unattached with the pouch. The other ring is preferably attached with the rear wall. The outer ring may be of a double-sided pressure-sensitive adhesive material, the forward surface of the outer ring having a non-adhesive backing sheet attached with it. The inner and outer rings may be of the same material or have adhesive surfaces with different properties. The pouch is preferably wc disposable and may be alkali disposable.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of disposing of an ostomy bag of the kind comprising a flexible pouch and a flange by which the bag is attached to the patient, the pouch having a forward wall and a rear wall facing the patient, the rear wall having an opening therein through which waste material from the patient can enter the pouch, the method comprising separating an outer part of the flange from an inner part of the flange, disposing of the outer part of the flange, sealing the bag at the remaining inner part of the flange and disposing of the bag in a wc.
The method may include the step of adding an alkali to the wc, allowing the alkali to break down the pouch and subsequently flushing away the pouch and inner part of the flange.
An ostomy bag according to the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing.